Suicide prevention group shows love at Golden Gate Bridge on Valentine’s Day

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Dressed in an orange coat, Mia Munayer leads the Bridgewatch Angels volunteers out on the Golden Gate Bridge on Valentine’s Day. The group is dedicated to suicide prevention. (James Cacciatore — Special to the Marin Independent Journal)

More than 100 volunteers gathered at the Golden Gate Bridge on Valentine’s Day to show love and compassion by watching for troubled people on the span.

The group Bridgewatch Angels has been coming to the bridge since 2010, engaging in suicide prevention. It was formed by Pleasanton police Lt. Mia Munayer, who was deeply affected by the movie “The Bridge” that detailed the difficult subject. It was shown to her as part of her police training.

“It really alerted me to the fact that something had to be done,” said Munayer, as she met her group at the Strauss Plaza on the east side of the span Wednesday morning. “Valentine’s Day is not only for couples, but for people who want to show their love on the bridge today. There are families who suffered some unbelievable grief and we are here for prevention.”

The group often comes out to the bridge on holidays and connects on social media to get the word out.

“You don’t have to be a mental health professional, you don’t need any experience, you just have to be the compassionate people that you are,” Munayer told the group as they waited to get on the bridge.

There was an orientation for the group, which was later divided into teams of four and then paired from there, one person to talk to someone who appeared in trouble and the other observing. The observer stands ready to call bridge police if they are given a casual signal from their partner.

The volunteers were told to watch for people who were alone, who appeared to be upset or who were pacing. The volunteers are not to make any dramatic moves, but to call bridge patrol officers by cellphone if they see anything out of the ordinary.

“Keep your head on a swivel,” advised Munayer, who said the outings can produce one or two cases in which bridge patrol officers are alerted. There were no such interventions during the 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. event Wednesday. “We don’t reach down or reach over the rail to grab someone, we don’t do anything that pushes the limit.”

Kevin Briggs, a former California High Patrol officer from Novato, came out to volunteer. He is credited with savings hundreds of people from jumping from the span over the 17 years he worked the bridge, earning him the nickname “Guardian of the Golden Gate.”

“The thing to look for are solos,” he advised the volunteers who were wearing orange armbands to alert bridge police of their presence.

Deanna Chase of Novato, a trainer for the group, has been involved since 2011.

“I watched the documentary ‘The Bridge,’” noting her inspiration to join. “It’s an unsettling feeling to encounter someone who may jump. But it’s important to me to be here. There is a lack of mental health availability in our community. Us being out here sharing human compassion is important.”

Jana Stuchlikova of Mill Valley came on her own to be part of the event.

“This is such a great idea to help people,” she said. “I lost a childhood friend who killed herself. So it always stayed with me. This is something that is important to me.”

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The bridge does have its own patrol. Last year it assisted 245 people on the bridge because they presented a risk of suicide, according to figures provided by the bridge district. Patrols have been increased in recent years.

And the district is working on installing netting along the 1.7-mile bridge. The net would extend 20 feet below and 20 feet from the side of the span. While people could still jump into the net, such occurrences might be rare because the net would act as a deterrent, bridge officials have said. The bridge district is targeting Jan. 12, 2021, as the date to finish the project.

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